President Barack Obama announced appointees to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights in a Dec. 15 White House press release, but have not been reported by "liberal news outlets" such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, and CNN, according to The Daily Caller.

The appointments prevent President-elect Donald Trump from adding members to the eight-person panel until 2020, when other panelists' current terms will expire, the Caller reports.

The appointments do not require the approval of Congress. One is Debo Adegbile, an attorney who was senior counsel to the U.S. Judiciary Committee from 2013-2014. Adegbile was previously blocked from a nomination to the Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division due to his defense of a former black panther in the killing of a Philadelphia police officer.

Pennsylvania Rep. Pat Toomey, a Republican, called the appointment of Adegbile a "kick in the teeth to the cops," according to The Washington Free Beacon.

Another appointee is Catherine Lhamon, who led the Obama administration's mandate to allow bathroom choice for transgender students. She is the Department of Education's assistant secretary for the Office of Civil Rights.

Trump will not be allowed to appoint anyone to the commission until July 2020, when commissioners Karen Narasaki and Patricia Timmons-Goodson's terms end, according to the Caller.

On the group of appointees in the Dec. 15 announcement: "These individuals have demonstrated knowledge and dedication throughout their careers. I am confident that they will serve the American people well," Obama said.

President Barack Obama announced appointees to the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights in a Dec. 15 White House press release, but have not been reported by "liberal news outlets" such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, and CNN, according to The Daily Caller.